Meet Kelsey Edwards | Co-Founder and Creative Director at The Ballog

We had the good fortune of connecting with Kelsey Edwards and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Kelsey, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
Our mission is to support artisans who are local, independent and socially conscious. We want to create a shopping experience with a purpose – to encourage people to think more about their consumption, understand that there are actual people behind the products they purchase and see the effect their dollar has on their community and the world. I think once we determined the “why” behind The Ballog, we were able to become even more intentional with our products and decisions and that is when we really began to see success. Having a mission behind the shop helps us press on when faced with hard days and makes the good days even more impactful.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
We are a mother/daughter team with two brick & mortar locations in the Atlanta area and an online shop. In 2012, my sister and I started a blog called You’ve Been Noted and we would host night markets with local artists from around the city that we called The Ballog. In 2015 we hosted one of our night markets in Serenbe (a sustainable community 30 minutes south of Atlanta) which led to a holiday pop-up shop in a vacant storefront in Serenbe with the same concept as our market, run by my mom and me. I had a full time sales job at the time, so would only open the doors when it worked with our schedules. The shop caught on, business picked up and we would open for longer and longer stretches of time. Flash forward to 2021 – I work for The Ballog full time, we have 2 locations, multiple employees and carry work from over 100 makers from around the country!

Our shop is named after my great-grandmother, Mary Ballog. She was the daughter of an immigrant family from Eastern Europe and lived a humble life in Gary, Indiana. She was creative, inspirational and a self-taught artist that did not pick up a paintbrush until she was 40. She taught painting lessons up until she passed away at the age of 94. Her legacy is that you can create under any circumstance and it’s never too late to start. The shop is a tribute to her.

We feel SO fortunate to be able to do what we do and even more fortunate to still have a shop after 2020. We are so thankful for all the people that have supported us, especially this past year. They are the reason we are still here. We have learned so much since opening our little pop-up six years ago. It has been a fun journey and some days I can’t believe I get to do what I do for a living, but it has definitely not always been easy. When I reflect back on the past six years, I wonder if I would have still pursued this had I known up front how much we would be faced with. I think if I had known, I would have been too overwhelmed to start and missed out on this life-changing opportunity – which is a lesson in itself. It’s easy to get overwhelmed if you are just focusing on the finish line, wondering how you will get there. Instead just start and take one day at a time. You do not know what tomorrow will hold, the doors that will open, the people you will meet or what you are capable of until you start.

I cannot believe how many problems we have solved over the years, how many challenges we have overcome, how much we have learned thanks to this little shop. It makes me so proud to look back at how far we have come and I can only imagine where we will go from here!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Food: Whiskey Bird, Gaja, Scout, Evergreen Butcher & Baker, Supremo Taco, Upbeet, Mezcalitos, La Tavola, 8Arm, Hsu’s, Staplehouse, Ponko Chicken, Victory Sandwich Bar, Table & Main, Ria’s Bluebird

Drink: The Rooftop at Clermont Hotel, The Local, Monday Night Garage, Poor Hendrix, Atlantucky Brewing

Late Night: Octopus Bar, El Bar

Shop: The Ballog, Lush Plant Shop, Megan Huntz, Kudzu Antiques, Dom Beijos

To Do: Day trip to Serenbe (and check out The Ballog while you’re there!), Write Club Atlanta, The Fox Theatre, go to a Hawks game, see a movie at Starlight Drive-In

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
We are a family business so a huge shoutout goes to my mom, Kathy, who owns the shop with me; my older sister Lindsay who does our marketing; my younger sister, Shelby, who does some of our social media; and my dad, Mike, who along with my mom, has supported us all from day one and encouraged us to go after our dreams.

And another huge shoutout to my husband, Gavin Godfrey. He has supported me every step of the way with The Ballog. From working at Ballog pop-up events before we ever had a brick+mortar, to supporting my decision to move an hour away for two years to open our first location, to encouraging me to keep going on very hard days (like every single day of 2020) – I don’t know that The Ballog would be where it is without his love and support. Sidenote: He is also an amazing writer – google him! Our Assistant Manager, Monica, is amazing and we couldn’t run two locations without her!

Books and organizations that have influenced us as a business:
Start with Why by Simon Sinek
The Localist by Carrie Rollwagen
Overdressed by Elizabeth Cline
Plywood People (organization in Atlanta)

Website: theballog.com

Instagram: theballog

Facebook: theballog

Image Credits
Lauren Liz Lacey Sombar